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Tom Redfern reports that Kiribati maritime police detained a Chinese vessel for illegally harvesting shark fins during a regional crackdown.

Kiribati maritime police detained a Chinese-licensed vessel for breaching its license by retaining shark fins on board. Tom Redfern, a maritime police commander, stated that the vessel was escorted back to Christmas Island for further investigation. The detention occurred during a regional surveillance operation involving 11 Pacific island nations, which included assistance from the U.S. Coast Guard and an Australian military aircraft. This crackdown, known as Operation Island Chief, aimed to monitor illegal, unreported, and unreported (IUU) fishing across 28 million square kilometers of ocean. While shark finning is banned across much of the Pacific, demand in East and Southeast Asia continues to drive the trade. Researchers like Andrew Chin and Demian Chapman have noted that illegal finning has led to massive declines in shark populations. The operation also identified 16 vessels of interest, marking a significant increase in surveillance capability and collective effort to protect Pacific fishing rights and revenue.

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